Film review: SOMEWHERE (Sofia Coppola, 2010)

I can’t tell a lie, I went into Somewhere not entirely expecting to like it. All I’d known about it before watching was that it won the Golden Lion at the Venice film festival and was generally applauded around the States, but was less-than-warmly received in the UK. Furthermore, some reviews had claimed the film’s biggest shortcoming was that it tried too hard to emulate Coppola’s 2003 Lost in Translation, a film that I didn't exactly care for.

With all that working against it, it’s no wonder I approached Somewhere with a healthy dose of trepidation. However, films can sometimes prove you wrong. Last year, I watched Bright Star not expecting a whole lot, and adored it. Similarly, Somewhere proved to be a genuinely pleasant surprise.

Stephen Dorff plays Johnny Marco, a Hollywood hunk who attempts to fill a growing void in his life with hedonistic parties and a rotation of random women. One day, his 11-year-old daughter Cleo (played by Elle “Dakota’s sister” Fanning”) bungs up and the two are thrown together in a journey of finding out more about each other, and essentially, themselves. 

It’s a fairly simple premise that has been covered in countless films before, but the gentle chemistry between Dorff and Fanning elevates the narrative, steering it away from the smug satire on the privileged that it could so easily have become. It hardly feels like Stephen Dorff is acting at all; he inhabits the role so well. Meanwhile, Fanning displays none of the precocious, know-it-all quality that rendered her older sister so irksome to me in the past. 

Furthermore, she imbues Cleo with some subtly sweet mannerisms – the odd hair toss, a bit of thumb twiddling – that indicates the uneasiness and vulnerability of a girl caught in that awkward phase of pre-teenhood. Yo-yoed between two vastly different worlds, she never quite feels like she fits in. It’s an understated, intelligent performance that deserves far more plaudits than it has received.

As with Lost in Translation, there are some indulgent elements to the film that one can’t help feeling Coppola put in the film for her own amusement, rather than her viewers. A semi-pointless and totally awkward elevator scene with Benicio del Toro springs to mind, as do excessively long sequences of pole-dancers entertaining Marco in his hotel room. 

However, these are juxtaposed with scenes that, whilst indulgent, fit in with the narrative perfectly: peaceful shots of Cleo cooking for her and her dad, tracking shots illustrating the exhausting reality of Johnny's celebrity status, as well as a delightful sequence Cleo earnestly describing the plot of Twilight to Johnny. 

As Cleo fills in Johnny’s days with her favourite activities, his life, perhaps unsurprisingly, begins sheds its emptiness. Yet, it remains a genuine joy to witness their journey together. Much of the film was reportedly based around Coppola's own experiences of following her father, Francis Ford Coppola, around the world. This autobiographical touch perfectly explains the sequence set in Italy, which features highly amusing skits on the language and cultural barriers between Hollywood elites and Europeans.

Ultimately, what the film could have done with the most was perhaps having the audience care about the leads a deeper level. Whilst I liked them just fine, I never felt I totally fell in love with them like I have done with various iconic film characters of the noughties, for example, Inglourious Basterd’s Shoshanna, Brokeback Mountain’s Jack Twist, Finding Nemo’s Dory. Nonetheless, Sofia Coppola certainly knows how to deliver a beautifully crafted film.

The soundtrack is delightfully kooky and fresh. I particularly enjoyed the placement of Gwen Stefani’s Cool played in the film; a song that could perhaps sum up the theme of the film quite well. Sarah Flack’s seamless editing, retaining the flawless rhythm of her previous collaborations with Coppola on Marie Antoinette and Lost in Translation—cannot be faulted. 

Ultimately, I didn’t entirely get where the film was headed, but, perhaps that was the point. Just like the father and daughter on screen, the true joy lies in knowing they will eventually get... somewhere.

7.5/10

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